I Love You
by LucianLoveNarnia
Summary: Based off of Mainstay Pro's YouTube web series "Finnick and Annie." A story about how Finn and Annie met and fell in love.


**Just a little Finnick/Annie fanfiction I decided to write. I watched Mainstay Production's "Finnick and Annie," and fell in love with it, so I made this to honor that web series. I did add in a lot more, but I also used dialogue and scenes from the series, so of course it wasn't all my idea. So if you haven't watched it, go to YouTube and look up "Mainstaypro Finnick and Annie," and watch it. It's so amazing. Enjoy!**

FINNICK'S POV

My father gave me the tools I needed for the rest of my life. At ten, I'd taken his advice only for fishing. He was an amazing fisherman, the best Four had. It was my father that caught the majority of the fish for the Capitol and the "upper class" of our district. Our family almost never interacted with the upper class of Four otherwise. Not until I personally saved someone from the upper class without really knowing it, that is.

It was a normal day of fishing with my father for our family rather than for the Capitol today, so when we had caught two or three fish, we headed for the beach and started toward the town. I stopped and looked longingly towards the water. We'd been here for a few hours, but I liked spending my days off of school and work just relaxing by the sea's edge. My father chuckled and responded by saying he'd see me at dinner time. He headed into town without me.

I headed to the water, wading into the shallows and standing there with my eyes closed for a few moments. Then I heard a scream and a splash in the deeper part and opened my eyes in surprise.

"Help! Help me!" a little girl's voice cried out. "Mommy! Mommy, help!"

"Annie! Hold on, Annie, I'm coming!" There was a commotion following, but I didn't take the time to listen before I dove in the water and swam towards the girl struggling to stay above the surface. I wrapped my arm around her waist and hauled her to the shore. The boat she appeared to have fallen out of was a little ways away, but I paid the people in it no mind as I pulled the girl to the shore.

"Are you okay?" I asked as I sat behind her, my arms wrapped protectively around her.

"Y-y-yes," she stuttered from the cold. I found even I was shivering in the breeze.

"What's your name?" I asked, even though I'd heard the woman—probably her mother—calling out to her.

"A-Annie," she answered.

"It's okay, Annie. You're safe from the water." The boat that held the woman who'd been yelling to Annie was hauled ashore and the woman ran to her. I recognized the woman as one of the upper class people. I realized she was the wife of the man we bought nets from. And I'd just saved her daughter. She recognized me right off, as well, as the son of her husband's best customer.

"Finnick Odair!" she exclaimed. "Thank you so much for saving my daughter! Annie, what were you thinking, leaning that far out over the edge of the boat?"

"S-s-sorry, Mommy," Annie replied, her eyes downcast. I stood and helped her up.

"Thank you again, Finnick."

"It was no trouble, Mrs. Cresta," I told her. I caught Annie's eye and smiled slightly at her.

"I…I'll see you at school," she said as she and her mother walked away.

And since then, we were basically inseparable. She was two years younger than me, so we only saw each other briefly at school in between classes. But after school, we would always meet up and head down to the beach, where I would practice fishing on my own. My father was put to work a lot more, even on some weekends, so he stopped fishing with me. I didn't mind so much, as I didn't want my time spent with Annie interrupted.

It was one day, four years after we'd first met, that we were hanging out after school as usual. I was in the water trying to catch fish while Annie sat on the sand on a blanket, silently reading. I got agitated with catching nothing and finally gave up on it. I headed back to shore and plopped down on the blanket next to Annie.

"Finn, you're getting my blanket all wet!" she complained, shoving me onto the sand.

"What's your aversion to water, anyway?" I asked her, quirking an eyebrow at her as I stood and brushed the sand off of me.

"In case you forgot, Finn, I had a traumatizing experience when I was little," she replied.

"Oh, yeah, real traumatizing to fall in the water for a minute before some other kid saves you," I said, rolling my eyes sarcastically. "But seriously, Annie, how have you lived in Four your entire life and _not_ learned how to swim? It's almost a crime." I plopped on the sand next to the blanket, since I knew she'd just shove me off if I tried to sit on it again.

"Huh-lo, Finnick, I didn't have to learn how to swim. My family makes fishing nets for a living, remember?" She flipped her long curls out of her face and gave me a pointed look. "And you, Finn, you're part of the lower class of Four. It's not fitting for a woman of my station to be seen splashing around with children of fish mongers." I flicked some water at her and she squealed lightly.

"You know, it's because of _fish mongers_ like me that you have food on the table."

"It's because of fish mongers like your _father_ we have food on our table. If we had to rely on you…." She scoffed playfully. "Well, we'd have starved to death a _long_ time ago."

"I'm getting better!" I said defensively. "Besides, tying knots is a lot easier than catching fish."

"Oh, really? I'd like to see you back up that talk." I grinned at her and nodded.

"All right. When I finish my net, you'll have to let me teach you how to swim!" I caught her eye roll as she collected up her blanket and book.

"Sure, Finn. Sure. See you tomorrow." She waved at me as she walked away. During the weeks that passed, I devoted myself to making the net in between school and downtime on the beach with Annie. By the reaping of the 65th Hunger Games, I'd finished it.

That year was especially hard because it was Annie's first reaping, and she was terrified. I tried reassuring her that it was okay, that there was no possible way she'd be picked. And I was right. The girl chosen was one named Leia Mitchelson, a thirteen-year-old I recognized from seeing her during lunch at school. I let out a sigh of relief that I'd been right about Annie not being picked when Four's escort, Mitchie Talnett, moved over to the boys' bowl and picked out a name.

"Finnick Odair!"

The world stopped moving. I froze in my spot before I finally turned my head to meet Annie's frightened eyes. She was staring at me. Of course she was staring at me. Everyone was staring at me…but I couldn't move. My legs were numb; I couldn't even force myself forward. It was several minutes before a Peacekeeper walked over and grabbed my arm, dragging me to the stage. I didn't even really notice that I was onstage, or the handshake between me and Leia. I didn't even register we were being moved inside the Justice Building until I was in there, saying goodbye to my family.

"Finnick, are you all right?" my father asked me, his hand on my shoulder. "Can you do this?"

"I…I…" I couldn't speak. I was still in shock. Before I knew it, my family was pushed out of the room by Peacekeepers and the doors closed only briefly before Annie came in, running to me and hugging me tightly. My senses came back to me right then, and I hugged my best friend back.

"Don't go," I heard her whisper.

"I wish I couldn't," I whispered back. I didn't trust my voice not to break now that my shock had passed and I could actually feel again. She pulled out of the hug and grabbed my left hand. I fixed my eyes on her face, trying to memorize every part of it—a sort of pointless thing to do, since I already knew that face so well. I felt something wrap around my wrist, and I looked down once she let my hand go to see she'd tied a handmade bracelet around my wrist.

"Wear it for me," she told me. I nodded, and looked up as a Peacekeeper entered the room. "One more thing," she added as she hugged me again. "Win for me." My arms wrapped around her like a vice, refusing to let her go, as these could be our last moments together.

"I will," I promised before she was pulled—all too soon—from my grasp. I was left alone in the room.

I sat on the train, picking at my food as Mitchie trilled on about something I wasn't listening to. Leia sat next to me, staring blankly at the table, and I knew from her expression that she was in shock and didn't realize where she was or what was going on. I knew the feeling as of late. Mags—our mentor—gave her a knowing look, even though she never took notice of it. The woman's eyes shifted to look at me, but I dropped her gaze after a minute.

"Oh, Finnick, you should be the easiest for the chariots and the interview!" Mitchie enthused, forcing me to pay attention to her annoying Capitol accent. "You're such a handsome boy!" I narrowed my eyes at her when she spoke like that. I wasn't a _child_. Obviously not, if I was being forced to compete in an arena to the death.

"Aren't you going to eat, Finnick?" Mags asked gently, drawing my attention away from my escort.

"Not hungry," I answered, pushing away from the table without another word and storming off to my room. I paced in there, mentally breaking down for a few minutes before steeling myself for what I knew was to come. I had to keep myself from being affected, or at least keep myself from appearing affected.

About a half an hour later, a knock sounded on my door. I opened my mouth to send away whoever it was when the door opened to reveal a distressed-looking Leia. I didn't know her too well, being a year older than her and all, but I'd spent a couple lunches with her, and was sort of an acquaintance of hers.

"I hate this," she whispered, moving over to a chair across from the bed and sitting down, pulling her knees up and wrapping her arms around them. I closed the door after her and sat down on the bed.

"I'm sure everyone does," I replied.

"Except for the Capitol," she pointed out.

"Except for the Capitol," I agreed. Her green eyes met mine, and I saw the defeat in them already.

"Win, Finnick. For District Four. For yourself. For Annabelle." I blinked at her, about to ask why she was already accepting defeat when she stood and exited the room.

Leia was lost in the bloodbath. I wondered if she had given herself up to the other Career tributes, but I shook away that thought and focused on my own survival. By the day's end, I'd made vine-nets, had several knives and a couple spears, as well as a few allies that included both tributes from Seven, and the girl tribute from Five.

During the first two days, I'd killed six or seven tributes before severing ties with my allies. They were killed within the next two days. The third day, I'd received the gift of a trident. My hands had been itching for one since the first day, and I was more than glad I'd finally gotten it.

I tried not to think about the fear in the other tributes' eyes as my snares caught them before my trident ran through their hearts. My mind flashed back to one moment Annie teased me about not being able to catch anything but seaweed. _People are a lot bigger than fish_, I reminded myself before regretting the thought. The only reason I was able to kill so quickly and efficiently is because, for the moment, they weren't human beings. In my eyes, while I killed, they were nothing more than fish.

By the end of the sixth day, it was down to me and the female tribute from Three. I wasn't sure how she'd survived, as I hadn't encountered her since the first day, but it didn't matter since the Gamemakers forced us into the open for the final battle. She was my target.

My mind went blank like it did when I'd been reaped only a couple weeks ago. I didn't register anything until the hovercraft was coming to collect me. I blinked and looked around, realizing the blast from the cannon still rung in my ears, and my trident was buried in Three's chest. I saw the hovercraft nearing me, and gave into my weakness for the first time in two weeks. I collapsed.

_ "Your movements betray not only your location, but also your intention."_

When I jerked upright to the sound of my father's voice, I was in the Capitol. My skin was wiped free of scars and wounds, and the soreness in my limbs from six days of fights with other tributes was gone.

Everything else passed in a blur. From the time I woke up in the hospital room to the time I was back on the train to Four, I didn't even realize what was going on. I tried to force myself to relax, but all those times of ignoring the fear in the eyes of those I killed were coming back to haunt me in my dreams.

When the doors to the train opened and I stepped out to the throngs of cheering people, I finally felt relief. I knew I would never be the same again, but at least I could try to get things to return to normal.

I hadn't seen Annie amongst the people at the train station, so I went to the beach when I was released from my own personal hell on earth. I recognized her matt of curls the moment I saw them and raced forward, calling out her name as I neared her. She turned, a smile spreading across her face when she caught sight of me.

"Finnick!" she called back in delight, squealing when I reached her and hugged her, picking her up off her feet and spinning her around. I set her back on her feet, but kept her in my arms. We stayed like that for what seemed like hours, though it was probably only for five or ten minutes.

"You came back," she whispered.

"I promised," I replied, laughing breathlessly. "And Finnick Odair doesn't make promises he doesn't intend to keep." She laughed at me and her arms tightened around my waist. In the distance, I heard my name being called out, but ignored them until they came closer. I finally pulled out of the hug when my father came to the stretch of beach Annie and I stood on. He paused when he caught sight of us, but chuckled and gestured for us to come with him.

"Dad?" I asked in confusion.

"Come on, there's a surprise for you," he answered.

When we got back to my house, I saw that the Crestas were there along with my family. A banner with the written words "Welcome Home Finnick" was hung up. I laughed and hugged everyone, so grateful to be home.

Weeks passed, but the nightmares never went away. My future was promised to me in an unnerving phone call from Snow, and I shuddered at the thought of what was to come in less than two years when I turned sixteen. Of course, he'd been very detailed about what would happen to my family if I didn't comply, but I shook those thoughts away.

I sat on the beach, staring out at the waves lapping at the sand a few feet away from me. I didn't even notice her until she came and sat next to me. Annie's arms wrapped comfortingly around my shoulders long enough to give me a reassuring squeeze before she pulled back.

"You know…I'm here if you ever want to talk about anything," she promised.

"I know," I whispered. Silence.

"Finn…you still owe me swimming lessons." I laughed and nodded.

"Yes, I do," I agreed, standing and helping her up before leading her to the water. I instructed her to lean back and let me support her weight, and was surprised when she complied immediately. We stayed in the water for a while; I instructed her on the basics of swimming before I concluded that today's lesson was finished. As soon as I uttered those words, my hands dropped from her arms where I was supporting her, and she went under for a few moments. She came back up spluttering and cursing at me.

"That was not funny, Finnick Odair!" she shouted, jumping at me and pushing me underwater. I deftly moved away from her and resurfaced a few feet away in deeper water.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry," I concluded after my laughing fit was over. "It was a one-time thing. I won't do it again."

"You'd better not," she muttered, crossing her arms and turning away from me, even as I apologized again and again. Finally I moved in front of her so that she could see my face.

"I'll let you dunk me a few times," I told her. And she did. It seemed to make her feel a lot better, as she was laughing by the time I came up the fourth time. I pulled her into another hug.

"Thanks, Annie."

Three years passed, and I was called away from Four and Annie more and more after my sixteenth birthday. It seemed that the only thing good that came out of my winning the Games was the fact that I'd never have to deal with being in them again. Unfortunately, upon my turning sixteen, I was given over by Snow as a sex slave to the people of the Capitol.

I never spoke to Annie about any of it. I knew she had a hunch about it, but she never said anything. She was just always there for me, the way she'd always been. Some things did upset her though, and she had every right to get upset. One day I promised I'd meet her on the beach, but some woman from the Capitol came to visit, and wanted to spend the day with me. Since I wasn't on…"duty," she couldn't have her way with me, luckily, but she took up most of my time before my father distracted her long enough for me to escape to the beach.

"Hey," I said once I sat down next to her. She turned away from me, scoffing, and I remembered my promise to meet her here earlier.

"I've been waiting here all afternoon, Finnick."

"I know, I'm sorry." I explained to her the woman from the Capitol and that just made her glare intensify until she was scowling out at the water. "What's wrong?"

"What's wrong? I think you know what's wrong, Finnick!" she exploded, standing and glaring daggers at me. "I'm not stupid! Don't think I don't know what goes on between you and those Capitol women!" I winced at her words and stood slowly.

"Annie—" I began, but stopped, overwhelmed by my own frustration. When I spoke again, I found myself shouting right back at her. "You don't understand what it's like, Annabelle! I'm not doing any of this by choice! If I don't, he'll kill everyone I love!" This seemed to take her back.

"Wait…who will?" she asked, obviously bewildered by my words. I looked around to make sure no one was within earshot, and even then I lowered my voice to a whisper.

"Snow. He told me a few years ago, after I won, that if I didn't cooperate…that if I didn't do what he said…." I stopped, finding myself unable to continue as the gruesome images that Snow had painted filled my head. I dropped back down onto the sand, my head in my hands. I felt Annie's slim arms wrap around my shoulders and give me a familiar, comforting squeeze. But rather than pull back right after, she continued hugging me.

"I'm sorry, Finn," she whispered in my ear as she rested her head against my shoulder. "I didn't realize…."

"It's not your fault," I answered. I turned so that I was facing her and hugged her close to me, memorizing once more, the way I always did, the feel of her warmth against me, her arms wrapped around my shoulders in a comforting embrace. And I knew she'd always be there for me.

Two years later was the reaping of the 70th Hunger Games. I was nervous once again this year before the names were drawn, hoping beyond hope that Annie's name wouldn't be picked. Every year in the past five I'd been met with relief as some other girl's name was called. I watched as Mitchie Talnett walked over to the bowl holding the names of the girls in Four, and pulled a piece of paper out. I watched anxiously as she opened it, her mouth forming the name I never wanted to hear in this case.

"Annabelle Cresta!"

If my own reaping was bad, this was worse. I didn't have to move this time, so I remained frozen in shock in my seat. My eyes met hers as she moved through the crowd up onto the stage. My gaze remained locked on her even when she had to turn away from me. Her fellow tribute was a fifteen-year-old boy named Titan Marx, but I paid him no mind. As soon as Annie was escorted inside, I made my way through. I waited considerately until her family had finished saying goodbye before forcing my way in, despite the Peacekeepers trying to keep me out.

"Finnick!" she cried, her entire body quaking with fear and silent tears streaming down her face. She'd broken down quicker than I had. I walked over to where she sat, pulling her up into my arms. Her grip tightened on me immediately, as if she was holding on to me for dear life. She might as well have been.

"I'm so sorry, Annie. I'm so sorry," I whispered over and over as she sobbed into my shoulder. When her sobs died down a bit, I helped her sit down, holding her quivering hands in my more steady ones to calm her. "I wish there was something I could have done to prevent this." She had gotten a hold of herself by now and shook her head.

"I don't think you could have done anything at all. My name was entered as many times as is mandatory for seventeen-year-olds." She was right. I knew she was right, but I still felt as if I could have done something to help.

"I still wish—"

"Finnick…c-can I tell you something?" she asked.

"Of course, Annie. You can tell me anything. You know that." I watched her struggle for words before she caught me off guard by pressing her lips gently against mine. Before my mind even registered what was going on, I found myself kissing her back. I pulled back a moment later and stared into her green eyes in bewilderment. Somewhere in the back of my mind I knew I felt something stronger than friendship towards her, but I never really acknowledged it before.

"I promise I will do everything in my power to bring you back home," I told her. "I love you." When I said those three words, I was hit with the force of just how true they were. Not only that, they felt so natural to say to her, as if I'd been saying them for years.

"I love you, too, Finn." My heart swelled when she said it back, and I leaned forward and pressed my lips against hers again.

It seemed like an eternity later when the Peacekeepers walked in and told us both it was time to get on the train. It was sort of amusing to see their expressions when they walked in while we were kissing. They may do Snow's bidding and be tough and well-disciplined because of it, but they were still human, and I could tell they felt a little bad for us.

I stayed as close to Annie as I could as we boarded the train.

This train ride was much different from the others in the past few years. It wasn't the mentoring that was strange, as I was pretty much used to that now, but rather, the fact that Annie was here with me. It was something in the past years I'd both wished for and never wanted. There would be some nights when she would come into my room and crawl into the bed with me, my arms wrapped tightly around her. I relished those nights as much as I could, seeing as there was the possibility they never happened again.

When we got to the Capitol, I could tell she was overwhelmed by it all. I stayed by her side as much as was possible in between mentoring Titan and my…servicing…duties. The beginning was fairly easy, as she was compliant with her stylist and prep team, and listened to everything Mags told her.

The interview was just as easy. We decided to portray her as the sweet and innocent type. She already had a way with words, and charmed the audience immediately.

And then it was time for the Games to begin.

The sixty-second countdown was the longest of my life. My eyes didn't leave the screen the entire time, but I hardly paid attention to Titan. I was focused only on Annie. My last advice to her before she had to leave was simply, "Hide."

After grabbing a backpack near her, she ran into the woods and scaled a tree quickly, coming to rest in a high-up, well-obscured branch. I was sure she could see what went on at the Cornucopia, but her eyes were searching through her backpack, obviously not wanting to see the bloodbath. Once I was certain she was safe, I finally turned my attention to Titan. He'd gotten his hands on a few knives and a backpack and ran into the woods, killing some of the other tributes in his way.

After the first few hours, I was called out of the control room for another servicing, but as soon as I was free from that, I went back in. Mags was in there, and she turned to me, a strict look on her face.

"Go get some sleep." My eyes travelled to the screen to see Annie had fallen asleep, and looked back at Mags.

"But—"

"I'll keep an eye on her. You go get some sleep."

I did as she said. The next morning, though, I was immediately in the control room, relieving Mags from her shift. Annie was moving through the forest, collecting berries. Next to her was Titan, who was looking around to make sure they weren't being followed. Relief washed through me when I saw their little alliance. At least for now I could guarantee her safety.

"Are you sure those are safe?" I heard Titan ask.

"Yes. They're the exact same ones I saw at the plant station in the training center." I examined them and saw she was right. The look on Titan's face was hilarious when she popped one of the berries into her mouth. When he was sure they weren't poisonous, he took one as well.

Several days went by with a few deaths here and there. But everything remained neutral between Titan and Annie. Eventually they were able to get some meat. They found a pond in the middle of the forest and Titan caught a few fish that swam around in it. Unfortunately, the smoke from their fire drew unwanted attention from the Career pack some miles away. I could see on a separate screen that they noticed the smoke and started going in that direction.

"Put it out," I hissed under my breath. No such luck. They didn't even realize the danger until the Careers were stomping through the woods twenty feet away from them. Annie threw water on the fire and scaled up the nearest tree. I leaned forward anxiously in my seat as Titan began to follow her, but was caught.

"Let go of me!" he shouted, trying to free himself.

"Titan!" Annie called down. I sighed in frustration at her. Had she stayed quiet, maybe she could have gotten away without the other tributes noticing her.

"That your girlfriend?" the male tribute from One sneered.

"No," Titan spat. Annie had made her way to a lower branch in panic, obviously looking for a way to get both her and Titan out of there. I felt bad for her, having to watch her fellow tribute and ally die, probably in a very gruesome way now that the others knew she was trapped there, watching.

The boy from One pushed Titan roughly over to the boy from Two, who grabbed him roughly by the hair. The girl from Two grabbed the knives and supplies from Titan, putting it with their stuff. I sighed and rolled my eyes. As if they needed any more stuff. I looked over at the screen showing near the Cornucopia, where supplies were stockpiled, before returning my attention to the screen I sat in front of.

"How should we start on him, Mari?" Two asked the girl standing next to him.

"His eyes are something of a problem," the girl—Mari—answered.

"Yes, we should get rid of those." He took a knife and neared it to Titan's face, and, unable to watch, my eyes flicked to Annie.

"Don't look, Annie," I whispered, as if she could hear me. She busied herself by getting farther up in the tree to where she'd left her backpack. However, I knew the screams of agony were getting to her from the look on her face. She didn't dare look down until everything ended, and by then the Career pack seemed to have forgotten about her, so they left the tree and walked away.

I watched as she threw her backpack over her shoulder and made her way to the ground, making sure she was completely alone before jumping down. She landed in a puddle of blood. When she looked down, she saw everything that had become of Titan, including his head, detached from his body. Her green eyes widened in fright and she started to shake, like she had been when I saw her in the Justice Building.

"Get out of there, Annie," I muttered, again as if she could hear me. I saw that the Careers realized they'd left her alive and were coming back for her.

The look on her face made me want to be back in the arena, if only to kill One and Two myself. I could tell her was losing her grip on herself. I saw that she'd been having issues keeping control over her sanity from the moment her name was called during the reaping. But now everything seemed to snap. She collapsed to her knees in the blood, hands clutching at her head and eyes squeezed shut as if she was trying to keep control over herself, but couldn't. She looked up just in time to see the Careers coming back for her, and if there was anything left in her, it was her instinct to survive. She jumped up and ran out of there as fast as she possibly could, finding another tree and climbing up into it as high as the branches would support her weight. There she sat, ignoring the tributes clawing below her, mind falling apart.

This went on for four more days. I wondered how long this would go on before the Gamemakers got bored and did something to up the game. For now, she was stuck up in that tree with the Careers at the bottom, like a squirrel trapped in a tree by a dog.

One night, as the tributes below slept, she gathered up her backpack and slipped down the tree. I could tell she hoped to get away and leave them wondering in the morning, but the girl from One woke up and grabbed her, alerting the others. My hands tightened into fists as One alerted the others. My eyes narrowed, and I refused to believe that Annie would be dead within a matter of minutes.

Apparently the Gamemakers hadn't noticed what was going on, because right then an earthquake hit. I looked over to another screen to see that the earthquake was crumbling a dam with a huge buildup of water behind it. I found myself on the very edge of my seat as the earthquake caused the dam to crack and finally crumble under the weight of the water. Annie managed to get away from the Careers and back up the tree during the earthquake. Just in time, too. Because even though I taught her to swim, and she was great at it, there was no way she could have survived the wall of water that crashed through the forest.

Several cannon blasts sounded as Annie floated to the top of the water, above the trees. Caesar Flickerman came over the loud speaker, announcing Annie to be the victor of the 70th Hunger Games. I let out a breath I hadn't realized I was holding and leaned back in my chair. She was okay…my Annie was all right.

I couldn't be on the hovercraft with her, being a mentor, but I saw her in the hospital a couple days after she got back. The wait nearly killed me, but I managed it. When I went in, I saw her sitting up, curled into a ball with her hands holding her head. I knew what had happened, and approached her slowly, not wanting to frighten her.

"Annie," I said softly. She looked up at the sound of her name and stared at me, as if trying to place who I was. Finally her green eyes blinked in recognition, but she didn't say anything. She simply curled back up into a ball and ignored me the rest of the time I was there.

Mags finally managed to make her come out of her shell, in time for the crowning ceremony and the interview. She stayed out of her shell long enough for that, but as soon as we were back on the train, she retreated into her mind.

She no longer came into my room at night, so I would get up and go into hers. Most times I'd walk in and she'd be curled into a ball again, tears streaming down her face. Some of those times I'd sit next to her, waiting until she exhausted herself before pulling the covers up around her. Other times she'd look up at me, recognition in her eyes but no sound out of her mouth, and I'd sit on the bed next to her. She'd throw herself to me, and I'd hold her the rest of the night. We reached Four five days after leaving the Capitol.

I helped her family with her in the weeks that followed. I wasn't able to go over to their house in the morning, as I wished I was, but every day I'd meet her on the beach, sitting alone. She would stare out at the water wordlessly, sometimes looking up at me, other times not acknowledging my presence.

"Hey, Annie," I would say every time I sat next to her. I started to busy myself with making a net, as sitting there doing nothing and staring at her would most likely drive _me_ insane. But I had patience with her, sitting quietly next to her, working on nets.

It was two weeks after we got back from the Games. It was the normal drill when I came to the beach, sat next to her with my usual greeting of "hey, Annie," and started working on a net. I noticed her shivering and slipped my button-up shirt off my own shoulders and put it around hers. She blinked at me, something other than recognition lighting up in her eyes. She opened her mouth, as if to speak, but then closed it a minute later and turned to look back out at the water.

That evening, I started a fire a few feet away from her and sat on her other side, to keep her warm in the chilly evening air. I was looking down at my net when I heard her speak.

"Hey, Finn." I looked up at her and met her eyes. They held a bit of their old sparkle, but not much. Hell, it was more than I could hope for right then.

"A-Annie?" I asked, as if she was going to retreat into her mind again. The ghost of a smile graced her lips, and her hand reached up to stroke my face. I leaned into her hand, my eyes closed in overwhelming relief. I opened my eyes again briefly before leaning forward and catching her lips with my own. When I pulled back a minute later, she whispered my name again. I laughed breathlessly, so overwhelmed with relief and joy that she was back. She may not be the same as she was before, but she was back with me. So I whispered those three words that were true with her and her only.

"I love you."

**I was in the mood for something fluffy. It's a lot longer than I usually write for a one-shot, and it took like three, four days for me to finish. . But it's finished now! Also, for everyone reading my current fic, Choices, I will update sometime this week, don't worry!**

**Review, pretty please!**


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